Yesterday, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue signed a national proclamation to declare April “Invasive Plant Pest and Disease Awareness Month.” April is a time when many invasive pests emerge and can be easily spread in the things people pack and move, such as outdoor items like grills, gardening equipment, wading pools and bicycles or patio furniture…. Read more »

Four Oregon bills that would regulate pesticide use and reporting went through public hearings this Tuesday. Senate Bill 853 and House Bill 3058 both would restrict sales of neonicotinoid pesticides to licensed applicators, and would completely ban chlorpyrifos, a widely used organochloride pesticide linked to neurological damage in children and adults. Read more on The… Read more »

Dr. Juliet Carroll, Fruit IPM Coordinator, received an Excellence in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Award from the New York State Integrated Pest Management Program (NYSIPM) at the Viticulture day of the B.E.V. (Business, Enology, Viticulture) conference in Rochester. NYSIPM develops sustainable ways to manage pests and helps people to use methods that minimize environmental, health… Read more »

The North Central IPM Center’s monthly newsletter, The Central Issue, is now up and running. To get news, articles, and IPM coverage in your inbox every month, subscribe here.

A bill was recently introduced in California to safeguard children from exposure to the highly toxic pesticide, chlorpyrifos. California State Senator, Maria Elena Durazo, introduced “Protect Children from Brain-Damaging Chlorpyrifos Act of 2019” in response to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to delay action on this toxic pesticide until 2022. Senator Durazo’s bill bans all… Read more »

Canadian farm managers and agricultural researchers are interested in finding new ways to prevent residual pesticides from entering the environment and contaminating water, and biobeds are showing promise as they make their debut in Canada. Already popular in Europe, where there are more than 3,000 biobeds in use on farms, biobed systems have now been… Read more »

The Environmental Defense Fund along with several other organizations launched a crowdsourced platform to help sustainability professionals stay informed on the latest resources to address environmental impacts across global supply chains. The Supply Chain Solutions Center features hundreds of sustainability resources across six topic areas including agriculture. “Our goal is to make finding sustainability solutions… Read more »

The Savanna Institute is launching a Midwestern Agroforestry Farmer Apprenticeship Program beginning in summer 2019. Apprentices will spend 10 weeks working with an agroforestry farmer, with part- to full-time employment throughout the course. Students will learn about perennial crop establishment, management, and harvest, farm planning, equipment use and maintenance, marketing, finance and more. The program is free,… Read more »

Huanglongbing, also known as Citrus Greening Disease, is a problem for many citrus growers. The Organic Center recently published Combatting Citrus Greening in Organic Systems: A Grower’s Guide, a 24-page reference available online. The guide presents scientific research as well as insight from experienced growers into managing the disease. To read it, follow the link above.

Walter Nelson, horticulture program leader at Monroe County Cornell Cooperative Extension, received an Excellence in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Award from the New York State Integrated Pest Management Program (NYSIPM) at the Genesee-Finger Lakes Landscape and Nursery Professionals Winter Conference in Rochester. NYSIPM develops sustainable ways to manage pests and helps people to use methods… Read more »